All things sparkly.

Right now princess P is all sparkly, because she used some glitter glue as body paint when she got tired of decorating ornaments. Baby Guy was quite indignant, because well, he'd woken up to join the party and we were cleaning up! How dare we. The differences between our kids definitely show up at Christmas tree time.

The last few years, we have made all our ornaments for the Christmas tree. There are lots of reasons for this. It allows the kids to take ownership in the process. It's fun and creative. It's inexpensive, and craft foam is safer for the toddlers too. It also creates a nice path of each child's development, as they proceed from the glob phase to the line phase to the pattern phase.

This year, our oldest two boys are big enough to move on from craft foam and glitter glue. They're working on foam balls with straight pins, bitty beads, and sequins. So this year we'll have some shine to go with our sparkle. They want to do the "stained glass" ornaments too, but I'm still not sure if I'm that brave.

I need to find our adornaments book, so I can copy some off for Baby Guy to color with crayons. It wouldn't be complete without the representation of what Christmas is all about.

Our tree represents our whole family. Everyone gets to take part. Mr. M puts it together and strings on the lights. I purchase the ornament kits and make a few examples of each. The kids put it all together, and then we all hang them on the tree.

We're making the ornaments today, so that we have time for them to dry before we string them and hang them on Friday. Our "drying day" tomorrow will be spent at Mr. M's mom's house, stuffing our faces with turkey, and playing games and watching football. Since she's taken over Thanksgiving the last couple of years our "ornament" tradition has gone much smoother.

So yeah, our holiday kickoff is a little early, but what's wrong with a little sparkle? It's just one more day to enjoy and appreciate what we have.

Life, death, and fire

What kind of people set fire to a playground for little kids? What good can come of that?

Yet that's exactly what happened at our boys school on Saturday night. Three teenage boys set fire to the little kids (k-2) playground. It's hard to have a gratitude attitude about such things. Yet remarkably, my kindie is not upset. The big insurance people will take care of it, after all. He's going to get a NEW playground. Besides, he only gets recess on Fridays.

I predict my second grader is going to be much more upset. He's all about justice, rules, and right. He's going to be following the situation until the "evil people" (as my kindie put it) get caught.

As for me, it's just one more line in the bad country song our last few weeks have been. My cousin's kids can't eat. (see food post earlier this month.) My husband's grandpa died. And now someone burned down my kid's playground.

It's hard to have a gratitude attitude in such circumstances. Yet I still can find things to be grateful for. A generation ago, my cousin's darling boys would be dead by now. Modern medicine is a wonderful thing. My husbands grandfather lived well into his nineties and knew the Lord. He's reunited with his wife of 60+ years now. And while the windows near the playground were damaged, neither the roof, nor nearby grass and trees caught fire. My kids still have a school to go to. Nobody was injured by the fire. The district has adequate insurance to repair the damages. Our kids get to see firsthand what happens when people don't think before they act, and have the opportunity to do better. And I know they will.

Cats? Who needs cats? We have toddlers.

Before I married Mr. M, I was a serious cat person. So much so, that in early marriage we attempted to keep one my cats, and adopted a stray kitten who needed vet care. The animals had to stay outside due to Mr. M's cat allergy. Neither situation lasted long.

Now that we have children, I realize that my love for cats is probably linked to my love for toddlers. Both like to sleep on your face. Both like to be played with when you should be working.
Neither cat nor toddler can fully decide if it's better to be out or in. Both love you unconditionally, on their own time. Neither one of them cares who's bed it is, that's where THEY want to sleep. Neither one has any fear about wrapping themselves around your legs when you're walking carrying food. Both cats and toddlers have that constant quandary of trying to decide what's more important, constant attention or total independence.

Cats are cheaper to feed, and can be left alone all day. Cats stay cats for ten or twenty years. Cats don't speak any form of English, so you have to guess their intentions by their actions.

Toddlers only stay toddlers for a couple of years, then they turn into preschoolers. They need constant supervision, but are also continual fun. Toddlers can hug you. Toddlers can say "My mommy!" Toddlers are constantly growing and learning about the world around them. They do not need a litter box their entire lives.

They grow into people, and if we're lucky and do our job right...they'll take care of us when we're old, or at least pick a nice nursing home. And if I don't do things right, I guess I can always get a cat again.

How to tell them

Mr. M's grandfather died this morning. He was a pillar of faith. He expressed all the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22 right up to the end, especially peace, love, & joy. He was preceded by his wife four years ago. Their marriage was a beacon of hope to us all, that it can be done.

That said, we received the call this morning after the older children had already left for school. That means I have to tell them when they get home. The older children will remember his house, and his magnificent train set he had set up in the basement. They may remember the mug collection from all fifty states and the organ in the living room. They will remember visiting his room at the retirement community and that he seemed tireder once he moved. But will they remember who he was? Or the stories he had to tell?

Will they ask us about death? After all, other than taxes, it's about the only certain part of life. Will they ask us the big WHY questions? And do we have the answers they will need?
Will they realize how blessed they were to know him at all?

I really don't know. Yet death is a part of life, and really it's just a comma. For Granddaddy, the best is yet to come.

Time alone??

What's that? We have six kids. Despite the facts, Mr. M and I had a whole six hours alone yesterday, courtesy of his mom.

Beforehand I was a tad anxious. We'd never left Baby Guy more than five minutes away. The older kids were a tad indignant that we would eat out and go to a sporting event without them. Why should we have any fun without them? For the most part, they got over it with the word "Grandma." Our oldest had a hard time puzzling it out though.

"Date?! What you do you need a date for? You're already married!"

Quite frankly, we've had more dates after we were married than before, and we both like it that way. (The before number is two, in case anyone was wondering.) There's no pressure in married dating, no wondering if they're going to "like" you, and no worrying about getting too close or attached. Once your married, there's no such thing as too close or attached, and we don't marry people we don't like.

Married dating is more about reminding yourself about all the things you do like about your spouse, having a dinner where no food is thrown on the floor and you don't have to cut anyone's meat. It's about having a conversation that does not include the word mom. It's about doing something fun without having to stop and count noses every fifty yards. It's about not having to load a bag, bring money for snacks, remind people to wash their hands. It's a reminder of what life was like before, and will be after.

As soon as we get back to the car, I call mom. "How are the kids doing? We'll be home soon." We'll have years for peace and quiet later. I'm ready to get back to my kids.

Me do it myself!

Independence seems to be a running theme in our house these days. Our two year old wants to pour her own "milk" on her cereal. Our four year old is wanting tie her own shoes. Our eight year old made his own cinnamon sugar this morning, (or on his first try "sugared cinnamon!) Our six year old packed his own lunch for a "full day" of school today.

Now Chip is usually only a half day kind of guy. He likes come home, fix a can a spaghetti for lunch, do his homework, and bounce off a few walls in the afternoon. Today, there's a field trip to see a puppet show in the afternoon, so he's allowed to stay. His teacher has a sub too, so the "iron lady" is in charge. I hope he'll be okay.

Our oldest is growing up in so many ways it's unbelievable. Sure I still have to remind him about homework and chores, but he is getting more responsible about taking care of his things. He learned all his lines in the Christmas play without our help. He can go to a friends house with permission, and be trusted to get home almost on time.

Then on the other end of the spectrum, there are our older relatives who are starting to give up their independence. My husband's grandfather quit driving a couple years ago. He had to have a housekeeper after that. Then he moved into a retirement community. Now he's just out of the hospital from a severe heart attack, and Hospice is helping with his care. He's still around though! And his mind still works. He has maintained his intellectual independence, and that's no small feat for someone well into their 90's. It takes a lot of strength to keep going when you need that much help.

The thing is, we all need help...and when we don't accept it when we need it it just makes a mess. My husband's grandfather is wise enough to know and accept that. My kids are not. Thus we sometimes have cereal on the floor, cheese crumbled by a dull knife, a broken piggy bank, or hurt feelings. Yet when they come around, one of them holds the dustpan while the other one sweeps. They ask us how to use a sharp knife. We taste the sugar cinnamon and help them add more sugar. Working together makes all of life sweeter.

Kids and their stuff

This morning Chip was looking for his November homework. I handed the crumple papers to him, and he was very indignant about it's condition.
"Well, if you want it to be in better shape, you have to take care of it."
"But Mom, it's all the same shape!" And so it is, after all 8 1/2" x 11" rectangles.

Princess D has learned the hard way that doll hair does not grow back, that markers on walls don't wipe off well with bedsheets, and that it's hard to tell which clothes are clean and which aren't when you leave them all on the floor. She is gradually edging towards leaving her clean clothes in the drawers and putting the dirty ones in the basket. Her efforts might work better if Princess P didn't think of the laundry basket as her royal ship.

Baby guy of course, is just a toddler. He thinks in terms of me and mine. He doesn't care about the where yet, just the who. He'll play with anything, anytime, and leaves a tornado in his wake. Princess P is a little mommy, and will often follow along, trying to "clean up" behind him.

The oldest two boys are faring better. Our oldest realizes that something left on the floor might go in a trashcan...and that electronics left out might prove enticing to younger siblings. The law of the jungle has been helping him learn to be more responsible. Bob has always been my neat-nick. His clothes and room are generally neat. I'm not really sure where he got that from.
Maybe he could teach me.

All in all, I'm glad stuff isn't anyone's first priority.

Baby Guy, the melting pot

Kids who are further down the line may not get as much individual attention, but they certainly have a greater variety of experiences. Take our Baby Guy. I've never seen an 18mo old who kicks a soccer ball correctly before. Much to Princess P's dismay, he's also an expert tackler. He also LOVES to dance. So perhaps he does get something from from tagging along to all the others activities.

He does still have interests of his own though. Jacks Big Music Show is his favorite thing on t.v. He is one of two children in our house who likes beans. His favorite fruit is bananas in an apple house. He seems to have an avid interest in pole vaulting lately. He found half a curtain rod, runs with it horizontally, puts it down vertically, and tries to jump. Maybe we watched too much of the Olympics this summer.

He learns to like to do what we all do. He colors with his sisters and puppy piles with his brothers. He loves the outdoors. He "helps" sweep and unload the dishwasher. He tries to steal the mouse and keyboard to the computer. He loves stuffed animals, books, balls, and Greys Anatomy. Maybe he'll grow up to be a surgeon. Maybe he'll grow up to be park ranger or software engineer. Who knows? As long as he grows up loving God, life, and people I think he'll be okay.

Our first "free" weekend.

This was our first "free" Saturday since mid-August. In some ways, it was a relief to not "have" to be anywhere at any certain time. In other ways it felt like ground zero.

9:30am...kids are told to clean their rooms.
11:00 am...kids informed that the cafeteria does not open until their room is clean.
11:15am, even boys room is done. (2 & 6) They get lunch, and help Dad move the computer from our bedroom to the family room. (Baby Guy is more than happy to throw the papers off the desk so Daddy can move it.)
12:30pm. Odd boys (1 & 3) start cleaning their room, because well, they're hungry.
2:30 pm...Mom sits in their room until it is done.
3:00 pm....Mission accomplished! Last bedroom is cleaned, and ready to vacuum. Now if they'd just fold their laundry....

In addition to helping me get the boys to take care of their stuff, DH moved a desk, two chairs, two couches, a bed, and the entertainment center to new locations to appease my "fall cleaning bug." I can't clean in Spring. We have soccer.

I attacked the bathroom, with bleach....wearing navy pants and a navy sweatshirt. Not my brightest moment.

The girls were busy with care bears, tea parties, crayons and kitchen raids. Princess D was in charge, of course.

And all this was before the errands of the day.

After the errands of the day was an attempt to watch the KSU football game, and listening to the boys play "stuffed animal war." This is an exciting game that is essentially a mix between a pillow fight, king of the mountain, and a catapult. For added excitement, they allowed Baby Guy upstairs to serve as a "mine." Any stuffie he touched would automatically become "mine."
Chip and KSU were predictably the targets of the day, so we had to put an end to it.
Now everyone's asleep, and I just hope I don't wake up to a stuffed animal ambush. After all, all is fair in love and war.

Rise and Shine

One thing they don't tell you when you bring the baby home. Forget about sleeping in for about ten years.

Our three oldest boys were all up before seven am this morning.
"Can I watch t.v.?"
"Would you please get me breakfast?"
"Aaaah! I get you evil emperor!"
"Hy-yah" kicking the spider man bag Chip got for his birthday.

No t.v., no breakfast before eight on Saturday. get yourself a piece of fruit. Quiet down, your sisters are still sleeping....or were still sleeping.
"Mom, I want oatmeal, w/ pineapple! please?"
"Hiiii!" Baby guy says hi too, and crawls across my face to get between me and Mr. M.

They are trying to be polite...
All right. We're up. Isn't that what diet coke is for? It looks like it's going to be a cheerful, action filled day.

Food, the blessing and the curse

Since we've been working w/ Princess P and her new diet, she's definitely been feeling better. More smiles and fewer tantrums are welcome in any two year old. BUT, her dipes have still been having issues off and on, and now I feel like an idiot. Part one of the mystery was solved two weeks ago, when at the grocery store, I realized I had broken one of the cardinal rules of allergic kids.

*READ all labels EVERY time you shop.*

It turned out, our favorite waffles had soy flour in them. So, we just bought french toast sticks. (Ever try to make gluten free, dairy free, EGG FREE, french toast? This is why allergic food is so expensive. They probably run through a thousand recipes before they find one that reasonably resembles the original food.)
My other mistake, was thinking I *knew* the list. It turns out one of our favorite oils is taboo, as in, tested at the same level as the stuff that makes her break out in hives taboo. EEK.
So I call my ever sympathetic MIL, almost crying, and she brings me down to earth. I am doing my best. She is getting better. I am still feeding her a well balanced diet, which is no easy task with her restrictions of beef, shrimp, gluten,milk, soy, eggs, and more.

And then I realize how childish I am, and how it can be so much worse. I have a relative w/ a child who can eat no food at all, except dum dums. He is getting a tube put directly in his stomach today, so his formula will have a direct route. He's three. Her faith, strength, and grace amaze me every time I see her. And on top of this, her toddler, who's only about a month older than baby guy, is getting scoped out for the same illness. Here's a link to more info about the disease, and a new foundation to raise funds to fight it. (You may have to copy and paste it. I am not a genius in these matters.) http://www.gardnerfoundation.org

Seeing her attitude, and what she's going through, makes me look like a whiner in a rose garden. Sure, there are thorns, but it sure isn't a thistle patch. I'll be praying for her family today, and ask that you would do the same. Peace be with you all.

Our kids only thought they had the day off today.

There was a "teacher improvement day" today, so our older boys were home from school. One of their teachers muttered to me last week about how election day should be a federal holiday, so no one would have to work, instead of adding childcare to the parent problem list on this already short day. I think there's something behind that idea. We live in an elderly neighborhood. They all get up and dressed, go vote in mid-late morning and have lunch and shop and make a day of it! Why should retired people have all the fun? What better thing to celebrate than our ability to cumulatively support our right to sort of have a say in our nation's government?

Nonetheless, my husband still had to work, so this is how our day went.

I let them sleep in, eat Halloween candy for breakfast, and watch a little t.v. Then I sprung them.
"Shoes on guys!"
"Where are we going?"
"the backyard! It's a beautiful day to clean up the yard."
I promised them extra money in their allowance and to lift all digital entertainment limits for the afternoon if they would help with yard work this morning....and amazingly it worked!
They had great fun raking the leaves, putting the leaves in bags, and puppy piling on the bags to flatten the leaves.
They took turns helping Princess P "help" with her little tykes rake and leaf bag. They took turns making sure Baby Guy didn't escape. He even got in on the leaf pile action, more in the throwing of leaves than gathering them. Some of them got in the bag, really.
By lunch we had four bags of leaves and three bundles of branches/sticks.
Then they enjoyed the beautiful day from inside on the couch, the computer, and the lincoln logs and foam blocks upstairs. No tantrums, no fighting, nobody sick, just enjoying being together. Today was a great day to be a mom.

Kids vote day

Today my boys voted at school: #1 voted for McCain for lower taxes, (Lower taxes for who?) Bob voted for Obama, because, well, he's going to win anyway, (which, fortunately or unfortunately, is probably true.)

Chip voted for blue! "I don't know who he is, but blue is my favorite color!" I wonder how many people are going out tomorrow who are voting for blue or red, as opposed to issues and ideals. I wonder how many people will vote based on the signs in the neighborhood, the sermon from pulpit, or the endorsement from the paper. The thing about democracy is that it only works well with an educated public. I sometimes wonder if we really are educated enough to make these decisions well.

Who am I voting for tomorrow? Well, there are six seats up for grabs here.....I think I'll be a nice shade of purple.

I. am. what? hero!

Tonight was hero night at AWANA. It was a blast, and I got a peek at the perspective of all our kids.

I've been worried about our oldest lately, with the mood swings, attitude shifts, etc, but tonight gave me renewed hope for his heart and future. He chose to be King David, complete w/ foil crown and harp, and a wrapping paper roll sword. He was puzzled and pleased that one of the older boys had picked Shepard David. I took a lot more comfort in this mind synch than the one at Halloween where he was Anakin Skywalker and his best bud was Darth Vader. Man, there was a conversation on choices and how they affect us......

Bob reused his Optimus Prime costume...totally masculine, moving, and well adorable. Hard core on the outside, sweet guy in the middle. It was a great fit.

Chip also recycled his Halloween costume. Although who doesn't want to be a knight in shining armor, or at least rescued by one?

The littles didn't get to participate, except for the pampered princess D, because well, the knight had to rescue someone!

I'm just hoping they realize that in the end there's only ONE hero. Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Let freedom ring~

Today was the last game for both soccer and football, and both Mr. M & I sighed in relief. We love our kids. We love the sports they play. We love the discipline and physical activity, teamwork,etc.
We do not love what it does to our schedule.

Yes folks, we now have two nights and Saturday totally free for chores, family fun, or just breathing. And our kids get a break too, before they get burnt out. Chips last words today were, "When is my next football game?"
"In March."
"Why?"
"It's too cold in the winter."
"Aw man, okay."
NOBODY tell him about indoor football, please.

#1 was just happy to have his pizza party, pictures, and medal for a job well done. He finally has realized he CAN be athletic, if he works at it.

So we're glad they did it. But we're also glad we don't have to set an alarm on Saturday morning, that our cold winter days can be spent w/ hot apple cider and books, and our evenings can be toy and bubble filled baths instead of quick showers and straight to bed.
Sometimes it's nice to have the freedom to just be.